We actually tested these out with the box of Corn Flakes no one wanted to eat. We made a slight adjustment and used powdered butter. The kids and I still liked them, but Mark was less then impressed. I'm sure if we used actual butter he would have enjoyed them as well.

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Are facebook {online} friendships easier to maintain than real life friendships?

To really get us thinking today let's look at the key words here -

Friendship - is a relationship between two people who hold mutual affection for each other (wikipedia)

Maintain - to keep in an existing state (as of repair, efficiency, or validity) : preserve from failure or decline (merriam-webster)

So what we're looking at today is preserving our relationships with people we like. Is it easier to do this with our online friends? Or in real life?

Online friends. We have them. In this day and age, just about everyone has some sort of online social profile. It has brought people back together who lost contact. At the beginning of Facebook, I remember becoming so excited because I got to catch up with so many of my childhood friends. When your family moves across the country, it is very easy to lose contact with friends. Back then, there wasn't Facebook. After a few months, I stopped sending letters, as I found new friends. So when Facebook came up, I was ecstatic. It allowed me to rekindle those long lost friendships.

The downside of online friends, is that if you have too many, some get lost. Instead of maintaining that friendship, they become stagnant, and sometimes forgotten.

Real Life Friends. Are fun! You can go out to lunch, or for ice cream, and experience the love and laughter you get in those situations. Are real life friends harder to maintain? Yes, because it takes more work than just turning on your computer. However, in my opinion, real life friends bring much more quality to your life. With our recent move, my friends took me out for ice cream before we left. It was some of the most fun I've had in awhile. These were friends that I would get together for playdates with our kids, watch each others kids so we could run errands, or help out when someone was sick. Online friends can offer support through words, but physically they're not there.

I found myself in quite the pickle after our move. I knew no one around, and our internet took forever to hook up. So I was out both real life friends (that were nearby), and online friends. We finally got the internet hooked back up, and I just delved right back in, talking to friends like I'd never left. My real life friends are also some of my online friends. The aspect of our friendship has changed now, because we are not close by. I can't run over and borrow a cup of sugar if needed. I miss that.

So what was really exciting? My neighbor stopped by yesterday and we sat on our front porch just chatting like we were old friends. She is so fun, and I can't wait to put in the effort to get to know her more, and really grow this friendship. It's more work, but it brings greater results in the end.

*To all my online friends reading this - I love you guys! I wish we all lived close by and could relax on a porch while our kids play. I would put effort into our friendship to make that last, but until we do meet, I will enjoy our online interactions!

Next week's Topic

Kitchens. What do you love/hate about yours?

The ground rules:

No Giveaways or reviews please, we want to stick to our topic or whatever
thought provoking topic you have decided on your own. We want to get to know
you personally not what you like or give out right?

Only thought provoking posts, which is why we always have a great topic
for you prepared in case you are just having a blank day.

Make sure your post has our Think About it Thursday
button!

Have fun, make some friends, follow, comment thoughtfully and above all
else be respectful! Don't forget to let people know which hop your visiting
from!

Suggest a topic, this is not mandatory, but we would love your input and
we will definitely consider it for future meme's!! If your topic is chosen you
could end up receiving an e-mail giving you a chance to be one of the
co-host's!!!

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Some nights I just want something easy. Something I don't have to spend hours in the kitchen cooking. I do love spending time in the kitchen, don't get me wrong, but some nights I'd like to just sit back and relax. While we've been trying to unpack and clean this house at the same time, I've had many nights where I really just don't want to cook, or do dishes for that matter.

So I started using Progresso's new Recipe Starters Cooking Sauce. I love these, and so far the family has loved them too!! Each can also has a recipe on the label to get you started. Last week alone, we tried 3 of these cooking sauces. The fist we tried was the Creamy Parmesan Basil. WOW! We used it to make some Crispy Garlic-Pamesan Chicken.

That was some serious melt in your mouth chicken! The secret for this recipe, I think is the chicken I bought. We live in a small farming/coal mining town, and have a very small market to get groceries. The plus is the chicken. I don't know for sure, but I'm betting the store packaged chicken was from some local farmer. Oh it just cooked up so nicely! I don't think I'll ever buy brand label chicken again while this is so readily available.

The Progresso Sauce gets mixed into the breaded chicken, but then also acts as a great topping after it's been cooked. It was wonderful as a gravy replacement for the mashed potatoes I cooked up as well. Add a green veggie, and dinner is served!

Next we tried the Easy Weeknight Beef Stroganoff. Now I've been making Stroganoff for quite some time. It's probably one of the first dinners I learned to cook. Progresso's recipe is pretty simple, and easily compared to mine. I know Mark enjoyed this one more, because we used Beef strips instead of ground beef. It did make a nice fancy meal. The Creamy Portabella Mushroom cooking sauce took the place of my condensed Cream of Mushroom soup. This was another winner at our house! Mark didn't know I used the Progresso Recipe Starter for this, and was raving about how good it was. He was surprised when I told him it was Progresso! Score one for Mom.

Last, I made the Chicken Pot Pie, using the Creamy Roasted Garlic with Chicken Stock. For this one, I actually made a few of my own substitutions. Instead of buying a premade pie shell, I made my own. Then I just used what frozen, canned, and leftover veggies I had on hand, plus some chopped up onion.

Chicken Pot Pie is one of my favorite meals! I just love the stuff. It is one of Mark's least favorite meals. Guess who ate the leftovers? Mark! Thank you Progresso for making my favorite meal a family favorite.

You can visit the Progresso Recipe Starters Recipe Website for these and more recipes!

*A big thanks to Progresso and MyBlogSpark for providing the Progresso Recipe Starters for review. All opinions are solely mine.

Monday, August 27, 2012

Right now until September 5, get a Matching Oven Mitt with your apron purchase! How awesome is that? I actually need a new oven mitt, mine are getting a tad overused.

Head to Flirty Aprons and use code FLIRTYMITT at checkout to get your Free Matching Oven Mitt!

Flirty Aprons really make great gifts! Not only for adults, but kids too. I got matching Children's Aprons for the 3 Princesses for Christmas, and I can't wait to see them wearing them. They are just so cute and well....Flirty!

I think I'm ready to start planning meals again. We've honestly been really scrounging lately, coming up with whatever I could. Our house has not sold yet, which means we're paying a mortgage and rent on a teachers salary. It's doable, and because we've done what we could to get out of debt, it's been possible. I've learned a lot though! I can now make my own tortillas, baking a loaf of bread each morning has become routine, and beans are becoming more accepted by my kids. We've delved into our food storage. I am so glad we have stored food for these tough times.

Friday, August 24, 2012

About the Book: Aine (pronounced "Aw-nee") believes herself to be a regular teenager in 1930s
Alabama, but when a blue-eyed monster named Biblos attacks, she discovers that
the reclusive woman raising her isn't really her grandmother and that she's been
living inside a book for the past five years. With her blind brother, Spenser,
she flees the pages of the novel she's called home, one terrifying step ahead of
Biblos' black magic. Her only chance at survival lies in beating him to the
three objects that he desires more than life.

As she undertakes her
strange and dangerous odyssey, Aine must choose between a family she doesn't
remember and her growing attraction to a mysterious young man named Gilgamesh.
Only through treacherous adventures into The Time Machine, Dr. Jekyll and Mr.
Hyde, A Tale of Two Cities, and the epic Indian saga The Ramayana will she learn
her true heritage and restore the balance of the worlds... if she can stay
alive.

About the Author: Jess Lourey is the author of The Toadhouse Trilogy: Book One, the first in a
young adult series that celebrates the danger and excitement of reading. She
also writes the critically-acclaimed Murder-by-Month Mysteries for adults with a
sense of humor. She's been teaching writing and sociology at the college level
since 1998. When not gardening, writing, or hanging out with her wonderful kids
and dorky dog, Juni, you can find her reading, watching SyFy-channel original
movies, and dreaming big.

My Thoughts: Loved loved loved this book! Creating worlds on this level is an extraordinary talent. Everything has to fit together, and Jess has done a fine job of connecting the pieces. It's rare I read the first book of a series before the rest are out. The reason being for this right here! I don't want to wait until June of NEXT YEAR for book 2! It's just not fair Jess, I'm hanging in suspense!

As Aine and her brother travel between books, I often found myself guessing which one they were jumping into next. When any characters name is mentioned I was trying to remember what book they came from. The one thing I learned most from this book, is that I need to read more classics. There was only one character I knew for sure her book, before the author tells you, and that was Aine's mom.

The Toadhouse Trilogy is a wonderful work of fiction that brings the world of fiction to life. If you've ever wanted to know what it was like to live inside your favorite novel, you must check out The Toadhouse Trilogy today!

Thanks Jess for the recommended reading at the end of your book. My to-read pile has just grown by 10!

You can buy The Toadhouse Trilogy on Amazon. (Prime members, right now it looks like it's FREE!)

Wow guys, so sorry I missed last weeks linky! It looks like plenty was shared over on Diane's blog though, and I'm excited to go through those recipes, and try some out. While I was waiting for the internet to be hooked up here, I found myself cooking up a storm in the kitchen. I've got a lot of fun recipes to share over the next few weeks, but I'll start with my favorite so far!

Place pork in shallow dish and pour Grapeseed Oil over them. Rub a couple Tbs of the Rancher Steak Rub on both sides of pork. Let marinate for 30 minutes to an hour (the longer it marinates the more flavor you'll get).

Heat 2 TBS Grapeseed Oil in a frying pan. Add pork chops and cook until no longer pink. Flip over once to get both sides. After you flip the pork chops, add a slice of queso fresco to each chop. Once the pork is done, serve and enjoy! We enjoyed mashed potatoes and corn on the side, but a fresh green salad would also go very nicely.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

I'm so sorry about the lack of last week's post. We were having internet problems with the move. So welcome back to Think About it Thursday. A weekly meme to let our thoughts spill out. Use the suggested topic, or write about whatever you want. Then link up your post in the linky at the bottom of this page.

This week's suggested Topic

Back To School

I don't have much to say on this really. I'm nervous and excited. I almost feel like a kid again, ready for the new year, but nervous about making friends. Only this time it's for my kids. Our oldest is starting Kindergarten this year. While the second will be in preschool.

For the longest time I was baffled hearing about mom's crying when their kids started school. I just didn't get it. When Princess V went to preschool last year, I was so excited for her! This year is different though. I don't know why. Maybe my emotions are finally in check. She's starting Kindergarten, and I do kind of want to cry. My baby is growing up and going to school. She's going to make lots of friends, and learn so much. Before I know it, she'll want to spend more time with her friends than with me and her sisters. She'll want to do her own hair, and pick out her own clothes (ok, she already does that, but I still have a little say). Today she has a Kindergarten test. Every other grade has begun school, but they test the kindergarteners individually the first couple days, and won't actually start class until next week. Today is Princess V's appointment. She has been so excited, and I've been so nervous. I think she's right on track, but I know we could have focused more on numbers over the summer. Isn't she cute though? Grandma P took her school clothes shopping while they were visiting. I've kept all the clothes in a bag waiting for this day. So first thing this morning she and I pulled out the school clothes. Isn't she a doll?

Now it's time for Princess C to go to preschool. If we hadn't moved, she had made it into the same preschool Princess V went to last year. But we moved. They have a district preschool, but it's focused mostly on kids who are behind. Princess C knows just about as much as Princess V so I don't think she's behind. They've put her on a waiting list though. They like having kids who are on track to be role models for those behind. If she can get in, great, but I'm looking elsewhere. Mark has found an in home preschool that sounds like it has potential, I just haven't gotten the number from him yet. I'm also considering just doing home preschool with her. I know she really needs the social aspect of being with other kids though. She has a ton of energy, and I can't always keep up with her. She is my social bug.

My mom taught me preschool and kindergarten at home. I didn't go to public school until first grade. When we first had kids that was my plan. I saw no need for preschool and kindergarten outside of the home. My tune has changed though. My kids love being around other kids. They love learning. Plus by going elsewhere to school I am able to give more focused time to the smaller kids. Having 4 kids so close in age sometimes makes it very difficult to give each one the individual time they need. When the older two get home from school I'll be able to focus some time on just them. While they are at school, I plan on having some fun activities for Princess R and Prince L. We'll go grab a hot cocoa at the Hot Spot, hang out at the library, and do our own crafts together.

I later found out my mom kept me home until 1st grade because there was no preschool or kindergarten to send me to. She did what she did out of neccessity. If it comes to it, I will do home preschool, but if we can I know Princess C will really thrive with someone else in a social atmosphere.

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

However, thanks to all® mighty pacsTM, laundry has become quicker and less messy in this home! Wait, messy? yes, messy. Don't you hate trying to measure out your laundry detergent and getting a sticky mess all over you, the bottle, the machine and the floor? Some people are lucky and have a sink in their laundry room (not so lucky if your laundry room shares the kitchen...but I digress...).

Doing laundry can be messy. The new all® mighty pacsTM have cut out the mess, and virtually shave off some time from doing laundry.

Just grab one of the premeasured dissolvable pacs and toss into your machine. They are safe for all machines, including HE. No more measuring or mess!

In our last house, I had these awesome detergent drips down the front of my machine, and a sticky puddle on the floor. When we moved into our new home, laundry became even more difficult. The machines are in the kitchen, under the cupboards, so I can't even open the washer all the way. Plus the kitchen is carpeted. So there I am trying to measure out my detergent, not spill any on the carpet, and hold the washer lid open. Then I took the time after every load to wash out the measuring cup so it wouldn't leave sticky all over the top of the washer...which has doubled as extra counter space. There were days I wanted to throw the machines out, or take a sledge to the cupboard.

Obviously those two solutions would not have been very.....mature.

When I got the all® mighty pacsTM from MyBlogSpark I was so thrilled to try them out! First because I love All detergent. I've been using them for quite some time as an inexpensive alternate to my other favorite detergent that is more pricey. Second all® fits in our tight budget and they have a Free and Clear line for people like me and my kids with very sensitive skin.

(stay tuned to win a package like the one I received!)

Now just to add to my praise of the all® mighty pacsTM, let me show you just how good a job these do! Our new home was quite dirty when we moved in. Walls hadn't been washed in years, and half the house was just closed off. We live near a coal mine, so it's not just dust, but dusty coal coating the walls and floors. My kids got dirty fast! and not just once, but everyday until I could get things completely cleaned up. I'm still in the process of that.

At the end of the day, this is what the kids pants looked like.

Now that's what I'm talking about!

I really love the ease of using all® mighty pacsTM. It has made me a little more sane as I continue with the Never Ending Laundry Story.

I'm back! I hope I didn't lose too many of you in this week of absence. I tried to have enough guest posts to keep you all entertained, and hanging around. What I wasn't expecting was for our internet to take so long to get set up. We've moved a lot in our married life, and we've never had such troubles. I'll talk more about that later though. For now I just want to share a picture or two of our new home with you.

Cute home huh? I actually really love it. The problem we are having is that it hasn't been taken care of very well. So for now we're renting. We're actually heading out tonight to check out some more homes around town.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

About the Book: Chase Danger Super Spy reminds me of a comic book in it's illustrations. Chase a 6 year old boy sneaks around being a super spy, hoping his mom won't find him out. Because let's face it, what mother is going to let their 6 year old fight bad guys, and build their own super car!

About the Authors: Chase Olivera and his parents Lisa and Chad Olivera are an Author and publishing team from California. Published works include the Chase Danger, Super Spy Series: Book #1 Mystery of the special Sauce and book #2 Pirates of Pineapple Island. Chase is a bright seven year old entering the second grade this fall, Lisa works with young children as a Special Circumstance Aide and Chad is a musician, composer and children’s theater director. They live and work in Santa Clarita California. As a family they enjoy writing books, going to the beach, watching movies and going on Geocaching adventures. Please visit them at http://www.chasedanger.com/ and “LIKE” them on facebook for exciting updates.

My Thoughts: I actually really enjoyed this book. It was simple and a lot of fun to read my with my kids. What we really loved however is the read along theater cd that comes with it. The sound effects really brought the story to life! Princess V really listened well for the turn page sound, and all 3 princesses got excited turning the page as they listened to the story. The pictures are vibrant, and easy to follow. I would definitely recommend this book for young beginning readers. Boys especially will enjoy this book.

He who was seated on the throne said, “ Behold, I am *making all things new!”

Revelation 21:5

**Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies and thy loving kindness; for they have been ever of old.

Psalm 25:6

I’m delighted to be offering this Guest Post on Adelina’s blog, as she is in the midst of moving this
week! I have moved MANY times and I know how stressful it can be - My offering for today will be a
potpourri of ‘do-over’ ideas for you - ;-}

I have learned through the years to ‘make Beauty from Ashes,’ so to speak, and I thought I’d share
just some of my many Repurposed Items and ‘creative storage’ ideas. Perhaps some of these may be
helpful to those of you who are on tight budgets or in tight spaces – as I know all too well… I have
been ‘repurposing’ items all my life – long before it became ‘fashionable’ to do so and I enjoy reusing
‘usable’ items, often making them more beautiful.

So – there are times when I just have to acknowledge my Dutch Heritage… Being very frugal,
resourceful and drinking coffee all day are a few things I do that come from my ‘Dutch genes.’
*smile* Therefore, I have many empty coffee cans for which I continue to find ‘good use’ –

My first project today is a ‘repurposed’ coffee can – decorated with scraps – and turned into a Gift
Container for some yummy Christmas Cookies or candies.

To cover the can, I stamped ‘sheet music’ in brown on parchment paper, inking the edges and then
stamping snowy flourishes in silver in various places. (These don’t show up in the photos – sorry.) I
used the (www.PaperCraftingWorld.com) Bell .svg file – a scrap of red, one of ‘marbleized’ silver, two
of plain silver and a snippet of silver ribbon to make the ‘Silver Bells,’ which I adhered to the red
grosgrain ribbon wrapped around the can.

I made a Recipe Card/Gift Tag for the top with a Circle Card file (I don’t know from whence I got it…)
– topped it with a Scalloped Circle ‘wreath’ I made from the same file. I punched ‘notes’ from silver
scraps, placing them on the wreath. I used the flourishes that were cut from the Bells under a red
flower plucked from a red hydrangea stem, enhanced with a red, flower-gem center and silver
‘Scribbles’ paint.

Another enjoyable passion of mine is ‘burning candles’ – for their relaxing scent, as I ‘burn mine at
both ends!’ Therefore, I have several of these empty glass jars at any given time…

I’ve found many ways to reuse baking sheets – These are old ones that I spray painted, used
discontinued wallpaper for the backgrounds and then .svg files as decorative elements, further
decorated with gems, flowers (from the Dollar Store) and magnets for memos.

I also use some cookie sheets and pizza trays that I picked up at the Dollar Store while working on
scrapbooking pages or other projects. Arrange elements on them with magnets until you have the
whole page designed and decided upon. Then you can secure them to the pages with adhesives.

I have turned simple lunch sacks into

Mini-Albums to keep memories –

turning this - into these - They include

many pages for photos and pockets

for memorabilia -

As far as organizing my crafty supplies, I’ve repurposed things for this, also. Here are just a few of
my ‘bright ideas.’

I got the box at Michaels, cut my

‘business/blog name’ on my Cricut

and adhered it to the front of the lid.

For the dividers, I cut pizza and cereal

boxes to fit, covered them with cream

parchment paper and punched tabs.

Some days it’s filled with cards I’ve

made, some days it’s not – Time to

make more!

I covered empty soup cans with the

corresponding color to my Timeless Twine

spools. I put my baker’s twine in a Sugar Jar,

of the ‘restaurant style,’ that I picked up at

the Dollar Store.

I made a cutting board lap desk from a

postal box covered with Kraft paper.

It’s lightweight, portable and I’ve found

it to be quite handy for years.

I saw a post recently about using knobs attached to wooden dowel pieces with Velcro added to hold pieces of felt to use for ink blending… I looked around and decided to attach the felted ‘furniture leg pads’ that I
had in a drawer to wine corks and lids that I’d been saving - FREE! I also use makeup sponges for blending
inks –

Another idea for corks and lids: glue them together and glue on the little foam shapes to make simple stamping fun – for you or for children!

Jars and food containers can also be reused as ‘serviceable,’ too – I use many of them to hold laces, ribbons, chipboard shapes, buttons, pins, any decorative elements –

I use all manner of food containers for

various crafting implements - Here are

vegetable containers in which my felt

marking pens fit perfectly and stack

nicely on the ‘box shelf’ which is their

home -

I keep track of all of the Punches I have in a $1 Kraft-page journal book I got at Michaels – I punch on cream paper and adhere in this book for a quick reference as to what I have while ‘projecting.’

I will leave you with another ‘make-over-magic’ project I made this week – turning a lowly, plain Dollar
Store mini clipboard into a sunny gift for one of my Dear Friends…! The .svg file is from
www.PaperCraftingWorld.com I used Mod Podge to adhere all of the papers and gems and protect
and preserve it while in use – The mini-pads come in several colors and I look forward to making a
rainbow of these to have for quick gifts -

I hope that some of this has been helpful to you! I’d love to have you come by MY blog
(http://aneleganttouch-lynden.blogspot.com) and see what I ‘cook up’ each week – adding ‘An
Elegant Touch…’ to all that I do! If you have some great repurposing or organizational ideas, I’d love
to hear them, too - Have a Lovely Day wherever you are and Thank You from Adelina and me for
stopping by and sharing part of your day with us! *smile*

About the author

I am a mature, educated, creative woman - a Mother of two grown children - a Gramama of two precious grandchildren - a proud Blue Star Mother of a Marine Captain - a daughter of the King of Kings - a woman looking for her place in the world in the winter of her life...sharing what I do and who I am - with You - adding ‘An Elegant Touch…’ to all that I do…